"So that others may live"

Illinois Search Dogs (ISD), based out of central Illinois, provides certified Search & Rescue K-9 teams to assist authorized agencies in locating lost or missing persons in emergencies, including natural and man made disasters.

For Emergency Callout, call 217-341-7872

*(Please note, we only respond to requests from law enforcement or other emergency response agencies.)

Cadaver Dogs

Cadaver dogs are trained to locate the odor of decomposing human remains on land or in the water, ignoring live human scent and animal scent.

Disaster Dogs

Disaster dogs work much in the same way as an area search dog, but they are specifically trained to find live human scent within the context of a disaster.

Area Search Dogs

Area search dogs find people by locating human scent as it travels on the wind.

Trailing Dogs

Trailing dogs will follow the route of a specific person’s scent deposited on the ground as a person moves through an area.

Illinois Search Dogs (ISD) is an all volunteer, not for profit corporation.

ISD has been recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as a 501(c)3 charitable organization.

All donations are tax deductible and always appreciated. We could not function without the support of public and private donations. To learn more about our specific financial needs and to make a donation, please click HERE.

News and Updates

Joan and K9 Sula are featured in the February 2010 issue of the AKC Gazette magazine highlighting Redbone Coonhounds and their work in SAR. Read the article here.
Haiti: Some Ways to Help
2009 was an exciting and successful year for ISD. Read all about it here.
ISD was recently honored by receiving the American Red Cross of the Heartland's Ambassador Award at their "Saluting Our Heroes" breakfast on Nov. 12, 2009

Illinois Search Dogs (ISD) is a team of professional volunteers which trains and deploys handler/K-9 teams that have achieved nationally recognized and accepted certifications for the purpose of assisting in the location of lost or buried victims during emergencies. Members of ISD have been selected as Canine Search Specialists with the Illinois Urban Search & Rescue Team ("IL-USAR"), and with the Missouri Task Force 1.

The purpose of Illinois Search Dogs is to train and deploy handlers and K-9s for multiple disciplines to respond to a variety of public safety and service needs. Our K9 teams focus on the multiple disciplines that are often required during an emergency response, including area search, trailing, cadaver, water recovery, and disaster K9 teams.Illinois Search Dogs promotes the advancement of K-9 search and rescue skills and improves standards of performance through training and educational programs based on nationally recognized and accepted standards. Illinois Search Dogs also educates emergency response teams and the public on working with K-9 teams.

Illinois Search Dogs knows that it takes more than K-9s and handlers to form a team. We appreciate all those who support our team in a variety of ways, we could not exist without them. We welcome anyone interested in learning more about our team and how they might be a part of our vision. To learn more about our supporters, please click here.